The challenge of managing yellow rust (Puccinia striiformis f.sp. tritici) in winter wheat: how combined climate and pathogen stressors impact variability in genotype reactions.

Despite the ongoing evolution of wheat pathogens due to the selection pressures of agro-ecological conditions, many studies have often overlooked the combined impact of both biotic and abiotic factors on disease occurrence. From 2016 to 2023, a comprehensive screening of obligate pathogens, including B. graminis f. sp. tritici, P. graminis f. sp. tritici, P. triticina, and P. striiformis f. sp. tritici, was carried out. This screening was conducted on a phenotyping platform encompassing 2715 winter wheat genotypes and their wild relatives, both with and without resistant genes (Lr, Yr, and Sr) for rust diseases. The data were analyzed using PCAmix, best subsets regression, and linear regression modeling. The findings from this study reveal that the plant reactions to leaf and yellow rust infections is far from straightforward. It is heavily influenced not only by prevalent rust races and climatic factors that impact pathogen life cycles but also by variations in the susceptibility reactions of wheat genotypes to the broader agro-ecological conditions. We also observed a tendency for leaf rust and yellow rust to coexist within the same host plant, even though yellow rust is typically considered more aggressive. We reported for the first time genes related to yellow rust resistance breakdown in Serbia in 2023. Lastly, we underscored the importance of investigating resistance responses to rust diseases not exclusively through the interrelation between resistance genes and pathogen virulence, but also by considering how plants respond to the combined stresses of abiotic and biotic factors. Consequently, our study sets the groundwork for further research into how plants respond to multiple stressors and contributes for further investigations related with effective integrated rust management.

Cereal-Pea Intercropping Reveals Variability in the Relationships among Yield, Quality Parameters, and Obligate Pathogens Infection in Wheat, Rye, Oat, and Triticale, in a Temperate Environment.

Widespread usage of intercropping systems has been limited because of a lack of knowledge about the key factors that affect the performance of intercrop components. We used general linear modelling to explain the effect of different cropping systems on the relationships among yield, thousand kernel weight (TKW), and crude protein of cereal crops under the same agro-ecological conditions and naturally occurring inocula of obligate pathogens. The results of our study showed that the yield variation under extreme fluctuations in climatic conditions could be lowered through intercropping cultivation. The disease indices of leaf rust and powdery mildew were highly dependent on the type of cultivation. The relationships among the levels of pathogenic infection and yield performances were not straightforward and were highly dependent on the yielding potentials of the cultivars. Our study indicated that changes in yield, TKW, and crude protein, as well as their relationships during intercropping cultivation, were cultivar specific and, therefore, not the same among all cereal crops exposed to the same agro-ecological conditions.

Co-Occurrence Patterns of Ustilago nuda and Pyrenophora graminea and Fungicide Contribution to Yield Gain in Barley under Fluctuating Climatic Conditions in Serbia.

The utilization of production systems with reduced chemical input renewed the interest in Ustilago nuda and Pyrenophora graminea. The investigations of seed fungicide treatments are more related to their efficacy than to their contribution to yield gain. The data were collected from research and development trials on fungicide efficacy against U. nuda and P. graminea conducted from 2014 to 2020 in Serbia. Partial least squares, multiple stepwise regression and best subset regression were used for statistical modeling. The total number of plants infected with U. nuda and P. graminea per plot differed significantly in the seven-year period. Shifts in the predominance of one pathogen over the other were also shown. Temperature, total rainfall and relative humidity in flowering time (p < 0.001) influenced the occurrence of both pathogens. The strongest impact on yield loss was observed for temperature in the phenological phases of leaf development (p = 0.014), temperature in flowering time (p < 0.001) and total number of plants infected with U. nuda and P. graminea per plot (p < 0.001). Our results indicated that regression models consisting of both biotic and abiotic factors were more precise in estimating regression coefficients. Neither fungicidal treatment had a stable contribution to yield gain in the seven-year period.

Rust expression browser: an open source database for simultaneous analysis of host and pathogen gene expression profiles with expVIP.

BACKGROUND: Transcriptomics is being increasingly applied to generate new insight into the interactions between plants and their pathogens. For the wheat yellow (stripe) rust pathogen (Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici, Pst) RNA-based sequencing (RNA-Seq) has proved particularly valuable, overcoming the barriers associated with its obligate biotrophic nature. This includes the application of RNA-Seq approaches to study Pst and wheat gene expression dynamics over time and the Pst population composition through the use of a novel RNA-Seq based surveillance approach called "field pathogenomics". As a dual RNA-Seq approach, the field pathogenomics technique also provides gene expression data from the host, giving new insight into host responses. However, this has created a wealth of data for interrogation. RESULTS: Here, we used the field pathogenomics approach to generate 538 new RNA-Seq datasets from Pst-infected field wheat samples, doubling the amount of transcriptomics data available for this important pathosystem. We then analysed these datasets alongside 66 RNA-Seq datasets from four Pst infection time-courses and 420 Pst-infected plant field and laboratory samples that were publicly available. A database of gene expression values for Pst and wheat was generated for each of these 1024 RNA-Seq datasets and incorporated into the development of the rust expression browser ( http://www.rust-expression.com ). This enables for the first time simultaneous 'point-and-click' access to gene expression profiles for Pst and its wheat host and represents the largest database of processed RNA-Seq datasets available for any of the three Puccinia wheat rust pathogens. We also demonstrated the utility of the browser through investigation of expression of putative Pst virulence genes over time and examined the host plants response to Pst infection. CONCLUSIONS: The rust expression browser offers immense value to the wider community, facilitating data sharing and transparency and the underlying database can be continually expanded as more datasets become publicly available.

Diversity in susceptibility reactions of winter wheat genotypes to obligate pathogens under fluctuating climatic conditions.

To date, studies have usually focused on the impact of abiotic factors on the distribution of plant pathogens and have built forecast models for the prediction of pathogen outbreaks. However, the impact of the combined effects of biotic and abiotic factors on the prevalence of economically important pathogens has usually been neglected. The objective of this study was to determine the relationship between powdery mildew and rusts of wheat and to examine how the combined effects of abiotic and biotic factors influence their prevalence. The study was conducted in the period 2016-2019 using the collection of 2158 genotypes of winter wheat. The most influential factors on disease indices and relationships among obligate pathogens were determined using multiple regression models and principal component analysis. The possibility of the coexistence of different rust species in the same growing season and in the same field was shown. The significant influence of fluctuations in winter temperatures on changes in the prevalence of obligate pathogens was determined. The strong impact of genotypes and their reaction on climatic elements in certain phenological stages were shown to be significant factors influencing the interactions among obligate pathogens and the predominance of one pathogen over another.

Variability of Stem-Base Infestation and Coexistence of Fusarium spp. Causing Crown Rot of Winter Wheat in Serbia.

Investigations related with factors influencing root and crown rot are rare and mainly related to farming practice and soil management. The main objective of this study was to examine broader range of factors influencing stem-base infestation of winter wheat in the field conditions. The effect of spatial distribution of infected plants on disease index (DIs) assessments was also investigated. Analysis of factors influencing DIs of crown rot of wheat demonstrated significant influence of the growing seasons (P < 0.001) and extreme fluctuations in winter temperatures (P < 0.001). In addition to that, localities together with their interaction with the growing season also significantly influenced DIs (P < 0.001). Aggregation of infected plants influenced variability of DI estimations, and it was pointed out that more extensive investigation should be conducted on broad range of DI in order to establish sampling method giving uniform sampling precision. Fusarium graminearum was shown to be predominant Fusarium species in Serbia (72.6%) using sequence-characterized amplified region analysis. Interestingly F. oxysporum was isolated in higher frequencies (27.4%) than it was reported in the literature. Given that there were no reports on the diversity of Fusarium species causing crown rot of wheat in Serbia, this study presents first report on this important subject. It also indicated that more attention should be focused on combined effects of abiotic and biotic factors influencing stem-base infestation of winter wheat. This knowledge will contribute to better understanding of factors influencing root and crown rot of wheat which would ensure sustainable disease management in the future.

Sampling Error in Relation to Cyst Nematode Population Density Estimation in Small Field Plots.

Cyst nematodes are serious plant-parasitic pests which could cause severe yield losses and extensive damage. Since there is still very little information about error of population density estimation in small field plots, this study contributes to the broad issue of population density assessment. It was shown that there was no significant difference between cyst counts of five or seven bulk samples taken per each 1-m2 plot, if average cyst count per examined plot exceeds 75 cysts per 100 g of soil. Goodness of fit of data to probability distribution tested with χ2 test confirmed a negative binomial distribution of cyst counts for 21 out of 23 plots. The recommended measure of sampling precision of 17% expressed through coefficient of variation (cv) was achieved if the plots of 1 m2 contaminated with more than 90 cysts per 100 g of soil were sampled with 10-core bulk samples taken in five repetitions. If plots were contaminated with less than 75 cysts per 100 g of soil, 10-core bulk samples taken in seven repetitions gave cv higher than 23%. This study indicates that more attention should be paid on estimation of sampling error in experimental field plots to ensure more reliable estimation of population density of cyst nematodes.